WHEN the whistle blows on Ashton Lions' first match next season, the players will finally be on home turf.

The Ashton Hayes football team has never been able to play matches in the village because it has no pitch.

Instead, home matches are played in Christleton and they practise in Manley.

But now Ashton Hayes Parish Council has secured 8.5 acres of land in an auction, meaning the village can finally have a recreation ground.

An open meeting in October will see residents suggest uses for the field and it is likely a football pitch will be top priority.

Lions player and team manager, De-rick Forsyth, said the home pitch will make a big difference to the team, who finished fourth in Division One of Chester and District league last season.

He said: 'We want to represent our village but at the moment you have to leave Ashton to do any sort of sport. We also have to pack all the equipment up every single time we play - we essentially play away matches every time.

'We are trying to get some of the younger boys from the village involved and hopefully with a home pitch they will be more likely to come along.'

The field, on Churches View Farm ,off Kelsall Road, was bought with a loan from Chester City Council for £71,000 which Ashton Hayes Parish Council will pay back within 12 months.

The winning bid followed two frantic weeks for residents after they found out about the sale and searched for ways to secure the land.

The loan was fast-tracked through the city council cabinet meeting on Thursday, hours before the auction at Rowton Hall.

City councillor for Kelsall ward, Andrew Garman, said: 'I didn't realise the city council could move that quickly, they were really supportive and we were very lucky that there was a cabinet meeting hours before the auction took place.

'We still have to get planning permission for the recreation area but we are optimistic because the land is in the green belt and the need for a recreation area is highlighted in the local plan.'

Parish council chairman Hugo Deynem added: 'The few days preceding the sale were a real rollercoaster of highs and lows as we had such a tight deadline imposed by the auction. Then we had to endure the tension of the bidding on the night.'